Adjustable driving connection for automatic stokers and other mecha



Patented Dec. 2, 1919.

9 Si!EETS-SHEE1 l.

R. S. RILEY. ADJUSTABLE DRIVING CONNECTION FOR AUTOMATIC STOKERS AND OTHER MECHANISMS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 22; 1916.

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I I ///////////h////// LQSOQQC R. S. RILEY. ADJUSTABLE DRIVING CONNECTION FOR-AUTOMATIC STOKERS AND OTHER MECHANISMS.

- v APPLICATION FILED JAN.22. 1916.

Patented Dec.2,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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ROI BERT SANFORD RILEY, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO SANFORD RILEY STOKER 0.0., LTD., OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

ADJUSTABLE DRIVING CONNECTION FOR AUTOMATIC STOKERS AND OTHER MECHA- v NISMS.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2, 11919.

Original application filed. May 13, 19 14, Seria1 No. 838,282. Divided and this application filed J'anuary 22,

1916. Serial No. 73,708.

' To all whom it ma y concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT SANFORD RILEY, a citizen of the United States, re-

siding at Worcester, in the county of W orcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Adjustable Driving Connections for Automatic Stokcrs and other Mechanisms, of which the following is a specification. I

The present invention relates to furnaces of the automatic stoking type and particularly to that class of such furnaces in which the freshfuel is introduced from beneath the bed ofburning fuel by means of a primary feeder, and the entire mass of fuel in process of combustion is additionally fed by auxiliary or secondary feeding means, the latter means being moved or actuated by the primal feeder through lost'motion connections w ich cause its extent of travel to be normally less than that of the primary feeder. The particular object of the present invention is to provide a simple and efficient means for readily and instantly altering the condition or adjustment of. the lost motion connections above referred to, whereby the extent of movement of the sec ondary feeding means may be increased or diminished, and at the same time provide security against possibility or danger of the said adjusting means being so placed or hired as to cause the primary feeder-to exert pressure upon the secondary feeder in the direction of withdrawing movement after the latter has reached the normal limit of its forward movement. The subject matter of the present application was first described and claimed in an application for patent filed by myself in the United States Patent Office May 13, 1914; Serial Number 838,282, of which application the present is a division.

The precise nature of the improvements constitutino the particular invention herein describe tail in the following specification in connection with the drawings formin a part of the same, wherein are described and illustrated one of the possible means in which the principles of the invention may be embodied. In the same illustration I have shown my invention applied to an and claimed is set forth in deautomatic stoker or furnace of the particu- -bodiment herein illustrated, except as expressly indicated by the terms of the ap pended claims. In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a plan view partly in section of anautomatic stoker of the kind illus trated in said patent having my present invention applied thereto.

a Fig 2 is a longitudinal section of the same furnace.

Fig. 3 is 'a perspective View of that part of the fuel feeding or stoking mechanism with which the invention is particularly concerned.

Figs. 4 and 5 are respectivel a side elevation and an end view of a nger which forms a part of my present invention.

'Fig. 6 is a plan view of the parts in which my invention particularly resides.

Fig. 7 is an elevation of the filler blocks and supporting finger, the adjacent feeder rod being shown in section.

Like reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

The furnace here shown is bounded by the side walls 10, 10, bridge wall 11, and

front wall 12 and in the space thus inclosed.

retort comprises' a stationary bottom or floor 14 and side walls 15 which rise above the floor and support grate blocks 16 on which the fuel fed out of the retorts rests and through which air for supporting combustion is admitted by means of channels left for that purpose, which open into spaces between the walls of adjacent retorts and communicate with an airspace 17 below the furnace into which air' is forced by a blower 18.

The fuel to be fed into the furnace is placed in a hopper 19 opening at its lower end into a trough or guideway 20 which extherein.

move back and forth.

feeder rearwardly.

tends through the'front wall of the furnace and opens into the fuel channel or retort A forward extension 21 of this trough constitutes a pusher guide and contains a plunger or pusher 22, which serves as the primary fuel feeder and is movable in a straight line back and forth across the bottom of the hopper. Said pusher is so reciprocated by means of a crank 23 on a drive shaft 24, and a connecting rod which extends from the crank to the pusher as shown in Fig. 1.

The side walls 15 with the air supplying members 16 mounted upon them constitute secondary or auxiliary feeding means for the fuel already in the furnace, and to serve that end are so mounted that they may Their rear ends are supported upon a stationary foundation 26, and their forward ends are rigidly connected to bars 27 which slidein guideways 28 connected to the sides of the fuel trough 20; all substantially as fully shown and de-.

scribed in my Patent No. 1,090,651.

For the purpose of enabling the primary feeder to actuate the secondary feeder, I

provide the pusher 22 with laterally extendmg pins or studs 30 which pass through slots 31 (see Fig. 3) in the sides of the pusher guide 21. The guide bars 27 of the sible the stable placement and retention of secondary feeder carry forwardly extending rods 32 which pass through apertures in the studs 30 and are of smaller diameter than the bars 27. Each of these rods carries on its outer or forwardend a head 33 which forms one of a pair of abutments complemental to and cooperative with the adjacent stud 30, the other abutment being the forward end of the bar 27. As appears clearly from the drawing the stud is between'these abutments so that on the forward stroke of the primary feeder, such stud strikes the abutment and moves the secondary feeder toward the front, while on its rearward stroke the stud strikes the opposite abutment and moves the secondary The distance between the abutments, less the width of stud 30, is the amount of lost motion between the primary and secondary feeders, while the difference between the length of strokes of the primary feeder and the extent of this lost motion measures the feeding movement of the secondary feeder. If the lost motion is equal to or greater than the stroke of the primary feeder, of course the secondary feeder is given no movement.

My present invention is concerned first with a means for varying the amount of this lost motion. The particular embodiment of such means herein shown consists of adjusting blocks or fillers 31 adapted to be placed to any desired number in series between the stud v30 and theabutment constituted by the forward end of bar 27, to take the rearward thrust of stud 30 and transmit the same to said abutment. Evidently, by applying or removing one or more such fillers, the extent of movement of the secondary feeding means may be increased or diminished, and such placement or removal may be made instantaneously and without requiring the movement of the stoker to be stopped. Each of the secondary feeding means, that is, each side wall of each retort, is equipped and operable in the manner last described and each is adapted to have its extent of lost motion regulated independently of the others by addition or removal of independent fillers. Thereby it is possible to alter the rate of fuel fed in any part of the furnace to fill up holes in the fuel bed, prevent congestion of fuel, loosen and remove clinker, or for any other purpose which may require-such local variations; while the secondary feed for the entire furnace may be uniformly varied according as-required by the character of fuel used.

lVhatever may be the extent of rearward,

or feeding movement given to the secondary feeder by the means described, such feeder is always returned to the same Joint on the return stroke of the primary eeder. The invention is therefore further concerned with means or provisions which make posthe filler pieces between the driving stud 30 and the rear abutment, but make impossible stable placement or permanent retention of the fillers on the rod 32 between the stud 30' part or others Accordingly I provide means such as a finger 35 beside the rod 32 adjacent to the bar 27 for supporting the fillers securely in the desired position, and construct the fillers so that they can not be retained by the rod in any other. positioni Such finger is formed upon a collar 36 which is fitted on the rod 32 and is secured thereto by a set screw 37 the collar having studs 38 which entersocketsin the end of bar 27 to position the finger at the same height as the rod. The finger is thereby held parallel to the rod at a distance from'it wide enough to permit the end of the stud 30, to pass the finger without striking it, as shown in Fig. 6.

The filleis are approximately horseshoe shaped or U-shaped, with short legs 39 which are separated far enoughto straddle the rod and finger, so that the filler rests on both of ofi.. The filler is made with such mass or I weight in its central part that its center of gravity is relatively high, being preferably above the center of the rod 32. Such portion is also provided with a pointed or U- shaped projection 40 midwaybetween the legs which prevents the filler from being balanced upon therod 32. Such projection naturally causes the block, whenplacedupon the rod, to assume a-position wherein the rod is between said projection and one of the legs, whereby the center of gravity of the block is at one side of the point at which not remain upon :any part of the rod except the block rests on the rod, and the block, if otherwise unsupported, will swing around and fall from the rod. Thus the filler will in which they are intended to be placed, and

impossible to retain them in any other position.

The parts herein referred to as auxiliary feeding means also serve to discharge ash and refuse in the manner described in my prior Patent No. 1,090,651, wherefore it is to be understood that under the definition of the term secondar feeder or e uivalent terms, I include a refuse -dischargmg means as well as feeding means for the burning charging means is connected with or is a I part of a fue'l feeding means, or not. I declare, however, that I do not restrict the scope of the protection which I claim for my invention to the combination of the adjusting means hereinbefore described with a furnace or stoker of the particular type illustrated herein and in my prior patent referred to. The invention which I here claim, except as appears otherwise from the terms of the-claims themselves, is intended to include any adjusting means having the capability for securing the results hereinbefore described, in connection with any mechanism wlth whlch said means are capable of being used.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The combination with driving and driven devices, one of said devices having separated abutments and the other of said devices having a member arranged to travel back and forth between said abutments, of a freely removable filler adapted to be placed between said member and one of said abutments and means for holding said filler in ment between said member and the other of. said abutments.

2. The combination with driving and dr1ven devices, one of said devlces havlng separated abutments witha connecting porvice and a driven device, one of said devices having separated abutments and a rod connecting said abutments, and the other device having a member movable back. and forh between the abutments, of removable adjusting means adapted to be placed upon said rod between said member and one of the abutments, said adjusting means being of such construction that-its stable placement upon the rod alone is impossible, and an additional support beside the rod adjacent to one of said abutments for constituting with i the rod a stable base for the adjusting means in the location where the latter is intended to be placed.-

' v 4;. The combination with a driver having a projecting stud, a driven member having abutments arranged on opposite sides of said-stud 1n the path of movement thereof and having a rod joining the abutments, of a fuel in the furnace, whether such refuse d1s-.

finger arranged besidesaid rod adjacent to one of the abutments, and a removable adjusting. block or filler adaptedto be placed said stud in the path of movement thereof and having a rod joining theabutments, of a finger arranged beside said rod adjacent to one of the abutments, and a removable adjusting block or filler adapted to be placed on and supported by said rod and finger, said block having legs arranged to straddle the rod or finger and haying its central part of such mass that its center of gravity is above the axis of the rod, whereby the filler is caused by gravity to turn about and fall from the rod when placed upon the rod otherwise than in engagement with the said finger.

6. In a furnace, a primary fuel feeding device, a secondary fuel feeding device, a lost-motion connection by which the first device drives the second back and forth comprising separated abutm'ents connected to one of said devices and a projection con nected to the other of said devices working between said abutments, and removable filler pieces adapted to be stably placed and prising separated abutments and a rod l)G-' tween them connected to one of said devices and a projection from the other of the devices arranged to travel back and forth along said "od between the abutments, and filler pieces adapted to be placed between said rojection'and one of the abutments for altering the length of stroke of the secondary device, the filler pieces being constructed to cause them to fall from the rod,

when placed thereon and not otherwise held, and there being a holding means for the filler pieces adjacent to one of the abutments.

S. In a stoker the combination of primary and secondary fuel feeding devices, motion reducing connections by which one of said devices actuates the other, said con- 1 o a nections mcludmg abutments and-an 1ntermediate connecting part between the abutments connected to one of said devices and a .member on the other of said devices arranged to travel between said abutments and to engage said abutments alternately, an adjusting or filling block adapted to be placed in a freely removable manner between said member and one of said abutments, and means adjacent to the last named abutment for holding said block in the designed position, the block and intermediate connecting part being so formed as to cause the block to fall away when placed between said member and the other of said abutments.

9. In a furnace, the combination of primary and secondary fuel feeding devices 1eciprocatively mounted, one of said devices having separated abutments, a member on the other of said devices arranged to travel be tween said abutments, a rod connecting said abutments, a finger beside said rod projecting from one of said abutments toward the said member and in a location such that such member is adapted to pass without engaging said finger, and an adjusting block adapted to be placed upon said rod and finaround and fall from any part of said rod on which it may be placedexcept the portion beside which said finger lies.

10. In a furnace, the combination of primary and secondary fuel feeding devices reciprocatively mounted, one of said devices having separated abutments, a member on the other of said devices arranged to travel between said abutments, a rod connecting said abutments, a finger beside said rod projecting from one of said abutments toward the said member and in a location such that such member is adapted to pass without engaging said finger, and an adjusting block adapted to be placed upon said rod and finger, adjacent to the abutment from which said finger projects, and having legs separated widely-enough to straddle the rod and finger, the center of gravity of the block being so located that said block is caused by gravity to swing around and fall from any part of said rod-on which it may be placed except the portion beside which said finger lies.

11. In a furnace, a reciprocating primary fuel feeder having a laterally extending projection, a secondary feeder, a rod connected to said secondary feeder extending parallel to the direction of movement of the primary feeder and passing through an aperture in said projection, abutments on said rod at opposite sides of said projection, a finger extending from one of said abutments beside and approximately parallel to said rod and located outside of the path in which the end of said projection travels, whereby such end may pass between the finger. and rod, and an adjusting block constructed to be placed across said rod and fingerv and to be stably supported thereby.

12. In a furnace, a reciprocating primary fuel feeder having a laterally extending projection, a secondary feeder, a rod connected to said secondary feeder extending parallel to the direction of movement of the primary feeder and passing through an' aperture in said projection, abutments on said rod at opposite sides of said project-ion, a finger extending from one of said abutments beside and approximately parallel to said rod and located outside of the path in which the end of said projection travels, whereby such end may pass between the finger and rod, and an adjusting block adapted to be placed across said rod and finger and to be stably supported thereby, said block being approximately horseshoe shaped and having relatively short legs separated sufliciently to lie upon respectively opposite sides of the rod and finger, and the block having also a transverse central portion of such mass that the center of gravity ofthe whole block is above the axis of the rod. a

13. In combination a reciprocating fuel feeder, a projection extending laterally therefrom, a rod passing through an aper+ ture in said projection and arranged parallel to the movement of said feeder,.abutrnents on said rod at opposite sides of said projeotion, an auxiliary fuel feeder connected to said rod, a finger projecting from one of said, abutments beside the rod and outside of the path in which the-end of said projection travels, an adjusting block having legs separated sufliciently to straddle the block and finger and having a projection between said legs to prevent its being balanced on the rod, whereby said block can be retained on the rod only when so placed as tooverlie both the rod and the finger.

14. In a furnace, the combination of a primary fuel feeder, a secondary feeder, a

given to the secondary feeder, comprising a filler adapted to be placed upon said rod between said projection and one of the abutments, and a finger arranged beside said rod adjacent to said abutment, the finger and rod together forming a stable base for the filler, and said filler having its center of gravity at such a high point relatively to the rod as to be incapable'of stable support upon the rod alone, whereby its retention betweenthe projection and the other of said abutments is rendered impossible.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature. ROBERT SANFORD RILEY. 

